Medical professionals have a duty to provide accurate diagnoses based on accepted standards of care. When they fail to fulfill this responsibility, the consequences can be devastating. Michael LoGiudice, LLP, assists clients with medical malpractice claims, including misdiagnosis, so they can focus on recovery while we handle the legal details. Contact us right away for a free initial consultation to discuss your case, learn more about your legal rights and options, and determine your next steps.
What Is a Medical Misdiagnosis?
Medical misdiagnosis occurs when a healthcare provider fails to correctly identify a patient’s condition. This can lead to delayed treatment, improper care, or even death. Misdiagnosis may result from negligence, communication breakdowns, or failure to follow up on abnormal findings. It can include:
- Delayed Diagnosis – The provider eventually identifies the correct condition, but only after an avoidable delay that allows the illness to worsen.
- Wrong Diagnosis – The provider identifies the wrong condition, leading to harmful or unnecessary treatment, while the actual illness goes untreated.
- Missed Diagnosis – The provider fails to identify any condition at all, ignoring symptoms and leaving the patient without care or follow-up.
Commonly Misdiagnosed Conditions
Some illnesses are more frequently misdiagnosed due to overlapping symptoms or lack of clear diagnostic criteria. These include:
- Autoimmune Diseases – Lupus and multiple sclerosis often mimic other conditions, leading to misdiagnosis.
- Heart Attacks – Symptoms may mimic indigestion, anxiety, or muscle strain, especially in women.
- Infections – Sepsis or meningitis may present with flu-like symptoms, delaying lifesaving treatment.
- Strokes – Dizziness, confusion, or balance problems can be mistaken for other less serious issues.
- Cancer – Breast, colon, lung, and prostate cancers often go undetected until they reach an advanced stage.
How Medical Misdiagnosis Can Happen
Several factors can contribute to diagnostic errors. These may include:
- Not Ordering Necessary Tests – Doctors must order appropriate diagnostic tests when symptoms suggest something serious. Failing to do this can delay diagnosis or treating the wrong condition, especially when the correct tests could have clearly identified the issue.
- Failure to Take a Complete Medical History – When a healthcare provider neglects to gather a thorough account of the patient’s personal and family medical history or skips reviewing past health issues, they may miss essential risk factors or misinterpret current symptoms, leading to diagnostic errors.
- Failure to Provide Referrals to Specialists – Some conditions require the expertise of a specialist, such as a cardiologist, neurologist, or oncologist. When a general practitioner fails to make a timely referral, patients may miss the chance to receive more advanced testing and treatment.
- Misleading or Ignoring Test Results – When a provider misinterprets lab reports, overlooks abnormalities in imaging, or ignores concerning data from diagnostic tools, they may fail to identify a serious condition or wrongly dismiss it as something minor.
- Inadequate Time Spent with the Patient – If a doctor rushes an appointment and fails to listen carefully or ask detailed follow-up questions, they risk missing subtle but important diagnostic clues, especially when the patient is not given the opportunity to fully explain their symptoms.
Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Medical malpractice cases, especially those involving misdiagnosis, can become confusing, technical, and sometimes challenging to prove. Doctors and hospitals rarely admit fault, and their insurance companies have legal teams whose goal is to minimize your claim or deny it entirely. Here’s how a skilled New York medical malpractice attorney can make a difference:
- Establishing Medical Standards – Your attorney will research the accepted standards of care for your condition, using medical guidelines and protocols to show that your provider failed to act as a reasonably skilled professional would in similar circumstances.
- Investigating the Facts – Your lawyer will examine your medical records, lab results, and provider notes to identify gaps, errors, or missed warning signs. This investigation builds a timeline that connects the misdiagnosis to your injuries.
- Seeking Expert Input – Your attorney can collect testimony from board-certified medical experts. These professionals explain how the misdiagnosis occurred and how preventable it was, helping prove negligence to a jury or insurance adjuster.
- Calculating Complete Compensation – An experienced attorney will determine the full extent of your losses, including medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. This helps you seek fair compensation that covers your losses entirely and helps you avoid further financial suffering.
- Handling Insurance Companies – Insurance companies use delay tactics and lowball offers to minimize payouts. Your lawyer will manage communications, fight back against bad-faith strategies, and push for a settlement that meets your needs.
- Filing a Lawsuit – If settlement talks fail, your attorney will pursue litigation by filing a formal lawsuit and taking the case to court. This includes drafting legal documents, handling discovery, preparing for trial, and presenting your case before a judge or jury with the goal of securing justice through a verdict.
Losses You Can Seek in a Misdiagnosis Claim
A medical misdiagnosis can lead to devastating physical, emotional, and financial consequences, and you can seek compensation for these losses, including:
- Medical Expenses – You can seek compensation for past and future medical care related to correcting the original mistakes, including surgical costs, rehabilitation, follow-up appointments, hospital stays, and medications.
- Lost Income – You can pursue compensation for lost wages if the misdiagnosis forced you to miss work for treatment or recovery.
- Loss of Earning Potential – You can seek compensation for future income you’re no longer able to earn due to chronic illness, physical limitations, or long-term disability resulting from the misdiagnosis.
- Pain and Suffering – You can pursue compensation for the discomfort, pain, and emotional trauma of living with an untreated serious medical condition.
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life – You can seek compensation if your health prevents you from enjoying relationships, hobbies, or day-to-day activities you once loved.
Contact an Experienced New York Medical Malpractice Attorney
If you’re suffering due to a medical misdiagnosis, you deserve answers and legal support you can count on. Don’t let a doctor’s mistake define your future. Our experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Michael LoGiudice, LLP, are ready to review your case, explain your options, and use their decades of experience on behalf of injured New Yorkers to fight for you and your family. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation, and let us help you take the next step toward a healthy future.